Process of cleaning coffee.



No. 774,725. A I PATENTED NOV..8, 1904. W. A. HASTINGS & N. J.HARRINGTON.

PROCESS OF CLEANING COFFEE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 10,1903.

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WZl/zesses:

UNITED STATES Patented November 8, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

NEAL J. HARRINGTON, MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,

TO COMMERCIAL COFFEE AND TRADING COMPANY, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, ACORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

PROCESSQOF CLEANING COFFEE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 774,725, dated November8, 1904.

Application filed March 10, 1903. Serial No. 147,075.

To all w/wm it may concern.-

Be it known that we, WILLI A. HASTINGS,

} residing in the city and county of Sacramento,

and NEAL J. HARRINGTON, residing in Oakland, county of Alameda, State ofCalifornia, citizens of the United States, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Processes of Cleaning Coffee; and We do herebydeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of thesame.

The object of the present invention is to remove the silk-like skin fromthe cofiee-berry without injury thereto, While at the same time freeingthe berry of such dirt or foreign substance as may adhere thereto, and.this without in any manner whatever affecting the,

flavor of the berry. The silklike skin desired to be removed is thatcovering of the berry which surrounds the same when within its shell orhusk and which remains thereon after the husk or shell has been removed.Ordinarily the berry is placed upon the market with this skin orcovering thereon or with such portion thereof as can be removed duringthe polishing process of the berry.

In carrying out our invention we make employment of any suitablerevolving or stirring machinery, preferably the style illustrated in thedrawings, wherein- Figure 1 is front view in elevation of a cleaningapparatus, partl broken away; and Fig. 2, an end view of the same.

In the drawings the apparatus consists of a rotating drum or casing A,preferably composed of reticulated material. This drum is looselymounted upon the shaft A, which shaft is provided with a series of knobsor projections a. The drum is driven by means of the pulley-belt A whichworks over beltwheel a, secured to power-shaft A and periphery a of thedrum. The central shaft A, which supports the drum, has imparted theretoan opposite rotation to that given drum A, said shaft being driven bymeans of a suitable belt B, .working over belt-wheel B, secured (Nospecimens.)

1 to the power-shaft A and belt-wheel B secured to shaft A. The materialto be treated is fed into one end'of the drum.

The berry to be treated is first subjected to moisture or has watersprayed thereon in order to soften or loosen the covering thereof,likewise any dirt or foreign matter adhering thereto. Care must be takenthat the coffee be not unduly moistened, else the moisture willpenetrate the berry and cause a swelling thereof and cause a spoiling ofthe same, For such reason we only permit the berry to remain in thewater sufficient time in which 4 to moisten the outer skin to beremoved-say a couple of minutes. After this moistening of the berry itis required that the excess of moisture be removed, and for this purposewe intermix with the moistened berry an absorbent, as sawdust or similarmaterial. The coffee-berries are thoroughly stirred, so as to permit theabsorbent material to intermix therewith. This absorbent takes up theexcess of moisture and prevents the same soaking or penetrating into theberry and injuring same. The moistening softens the outer skin orcovering of the berry and such foreign material as may be thereon andrenders the separation thereof comparatively an easy matter. Theprepared or partially-treated berries, with the absorbent materialintermixed therewith, are then placed within a suitable stirringapparatus-as, for instance, the drum A-and subjected to the actionthereof for a period of about thirty minutes. The time of the final stepof the process is dependent greatly upon the speed of stirring. As thecylinder A is revolved the material fed therein is carried around,thoroughly intermixed, and the berries subjected to frictional contact.This tumbling and rapid stirring of the berries serves to remove thesoftened skin therefrom, likewise all foreign matter. As the skin anddirt are removed the same, together with the absorbent powder, aredischarged through the openings of the casing,

while at the same time the air drawn therein serves to gradually dry themoistened berries. During this stirring step of the process all foreignsubstance an d the previously-loosened skin are removed by attrition,while at the same time the rubbing incident thereto answers to highlypolish the berries.

The qualities which render sawdust particularly effective in carryingout the foregoing process are, first, its capability of absorbingmoisture, so that it will take up the moisture from the berries duringtreatment; second, its granular form whereby it will intimately mix withthe berries without permanently adhering thereto, and, third, itsabrasive qualities, whereby when thoroughly agitated with the berries itwill remove the already-softened outer skin by attrition. To carry outour invention, therefore, we employ sawdust or similar material havinglike qualities.

While We prefer to attrite the berries within a rotating perforated orreticulated cylinder, (as by so doing the removed substance is.discharged through the openings of the cylinder, and thus separated fromthe cleaned and polished berries,) still we do not wish to be soconfined, as the loosened skin and substance hands.

W. A. HASTINGS. NEAL J. HARRINGTON.

\Vitnesses as to signature of W. A. Hastings:

M. F. COOPER, ARTHUR LEIGH.

\Vitnesses as to signature of Neal J. Harrington:

A. J. KILLEEN, W. L. LAURENCE.

